'Wolverine 3' May Be the Next R-Rated Comic Book Movie

After the jaw-dropping, record-breaking success of "Deadpool," studios are clamoring for their own R-rated takes on the superhero genre. But it looks like Fox will beat everyone else to the punch once again with the next "Wolverine" film, which is also reportedly circling an R rating.

The news comes from the annual Toy Fair, which took place in New York City last weekend. An Imgur user spotted a brochure touting the upcoming release -- which looks like it's working with the title "The Wolverine III" for now -- and noticed that under "Anticipated Rating," Fox gave the flick an R.

As Screen Crush points out, it's not an entirely surprising decision, given that Wolverine -- played by Hugh Jackman in the ongoing series of films -- is prone to darkness, particularly with his past history of dropping F-bombs and killing mercenaries. The site also points to an interview with MTV that Jackman did way back in 2011, when he was shooting 2013's "The Wolverine" with director James Mangold, talking about the possibility of taking the character in an edgier direction.

"There's such great temptation to make an R-rated 'Wolverine.' I've always felt that, and I know a lot of fans would like that," Jackman told MTV at the time. "If there's ever going to be a superhero that is going to be R-rated, it's going to be Wolverine."

Of course, we all know now that "Deadpool" beat Jackman and co. to the punch, though it's interesting that the former character first popped up in the latter's "X-Men: Origins" flick, and they're both now gunning for R-rated greatness. We'll have to wait and see if this tentative rating pans out for the "Wolverine" franchise, but it's certainly an intriguing prospect.